-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- At the end of a bitter political season too often hijacked by the extremes , the Rally to Restore Sanity was a heartening reaffirmation of American humor , smarts and civility .

This year 's previous political rallies on the Washington mall -- Glenn Beck 's `` Restore Honor '' rally and the labor/liberal corollary `` One Nation '' rally emceed by Ed Schultz -- seemed like grim partisan marches compared to the optimism of this overflowing crowd composed of Americans from the sensible center .

While Beck asked his supporters not to bring signs -LRB- presumably for fear of the distractions they might create -RRB- and Schultz 's rally signs were mostly printed up by unions and activist groups , the signs at the Restore Sanity rally were clearly homemade . And like hosts Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert , they used satire to comment on the political insanity that surrounds us . Among the signs I saw :

• God Hates Nags

• The Rant Is Too Damn High

• Restrain the Craziness

• Civil War was an Inside Job

• Texans for Staying in the Union

• Obama : At Least He Is n't James Buchanan

• Hitler was Hitler

• Want Less Government ? Move to Somalia -LRB- not that there 's anything wrong with that ... -RRB-

• Real Patriots Can Handle a Difference of Opinion

• Real Americans Do n't Use the Term ` Real Americans '

• I read the Constitution for the Articles

• I Masturbate and I Vote

• Moderate to the Extreme

The content from the stage was essentially a comedy show mixed with musical guests .

The message was communicated mostly in `` show do n't tell '' sketches . In one , Yusuf Islam , the artist formerly known as Cat Stevens , came out to play the hippie anthem `` Peace Train , '' interrupted by Ozzy Osbourne playing `` Crazy Train '' -- culminating with the O'Jays `` Love Train , '' a train we can all get on board .

But the crowd was making a fairly consistent , if irreverent , political statement -- from the couple who drove up from Florida with a sign that quoted from a '70s pop song : `` Clowns to the left of me , Jokers to the right , here I am -- stuck in the middle with you , '' to a sign that read , `` What do we want ? Moderation ! When do we want it ? In a reasonable timeframe ! ''

College students from Massachusetts made their point for the media : `` Can we get some airtime , please ? -- The Moderates . ''

`` I think there 's too much polarization going on -- and of course the squeaky wheel gets the grease , '' said Reba Winstead of Virginia , whose husband was laid off last year . She was holding a sign that read `` One of the Moderate Majority . '' `` And so the extremists on both ends are the ones screaming the loudest and so the rest of us are in the middle thinking that we 're not being heard . ''

Another woman held a sign that quoted legendary journalist Edward R. Murrow : `` We will not be driven by fear into an age of unreason . ''

Some partisan journalists tried to spin the rally as just a liberal event , but they missed the point by reinforcing the idea that has helped get us into this mess : that if you 're not with us , you 're against us ; that if you 're not conservative , you 're liberal .

In fact , the only two signs I saw for actual candidates running this fall were for independents Lincoln Chafee and Charlie Crist . And while there was no shortage of anger expressed , at Fox News in particular , at what other rally would you see a sign that read : `` Palin and Pelosi : Both Nice Ladies . ''

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In comparing rallies , size matters -- and having covered the conservative and liberal rallies on the mall earlier this year , I can tell you that the Restore Sanity rally was much larger . This is fitting , because there are more Americans in the center than those who are on the right or left . And there are certainly more Americans who prefer the leavening effects of laughter to ideological fear-mongering .

But for all the humor and affirmation , the Restore Sanity rally ultimately had a serious point that will apply when the election is over -- namely , that we have to work together to solve problems , but our polarized politics and the partisan media are stopping our ability to reason together as Americans .

As Jon Stewart said in his instant classic of a closing speech : `` Why would you work with Marxists actively subverting our Constitution or racists and homophobes who see no one 's humanity but their own ? We hear every damn day about how fragile our country is -- on the brink of catastrophe -- torn by polarizing hate , and how it 's a shame that we ca n't work together to get things done . But the truth is we do . We work together to get things done every damn day . The only place we do n't is here -LSB- in Washington -RSB- or on cable TV . ''

So this celebration of sanity and humor came with a challenge to hyperpartisans in politics and media -- stop playing to the lowest common denominator , stop trying to divide Americans in an attempt to conquer . The American people are smart and `` most Americans do n't live their lives solely as Democrats or Republicans or conservatives or liberals , '' as Stewart remarked .

The rally 's size and enthusiasm was evidence of a growing demand for something different -- an alternative to predictable talking points and the partisan spin cycle , a desire for humor and honesty , independence and integrity . It is both an opportunity and an obligation .

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of John P. Avlon .

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John Avlon : The `` Restore Sanity '' rally emphasized moderation and humor

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He says the big crowd yearned for an alternative to extreme partisanship

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Avlon says some tried to spin it as a liberal event , but the real theme was a centrist one

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Hyperpartisans should `` stop trying to divide Americans in an attempt to conquer , '' he says